Telephone handset hanger



y 9, 1953 J. J. FLEMING TELEPHONE H'ANDSET HANGER Filed Feb. 9. 1950 INVENTOR. JOHN J. FLEMING ATTORNEY Patented May 19,1953

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE" TELEPHONE HANDSET HANGER,

John J. Fleming, Davenport, Iowa Application February 9, 1950, Serial No. 143,266

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a rest or support for temporarily holding the hand-set of a telephone instrument of the so-called French or cradle type when such hand-set is removed or demounted from the circuit-controlling key of such telephone instrument.

The general concept of supporting a hand-set or combined receiver-transmitter of a telephone instrument is known and various devices have been provided for that purpose, all previous efforts having been commonly directed toward the provision of a support or rest to eliminate the disadvantages incident tolaying the handset on a desk or table. It will be appreciated that the contact of a hand-set or combined receiver-transmitter with a hard surface when the circuit-controlling key is released creates quite a sharp and annoying sound to the person calling. It will be further appreciated that extraneous noises occurring during the interval that the called person is otherwise engaged while the hand-set is lying on the desk or table are readily transmitted to the listener. Very often these sounds are annoying and very often information not intended to be transmitted is heard by the listener. In any case, the answer to the problem lies in the provision of a simple support or rest that may be inexpensively manufactured and sold and that may be conveniently used. The principal object of the present invention is to provide such improved hand-set or support having considerable advantages over those heretofore known.

It is an important object of the invention to provide a hand-set rest comprising a body having a pair of carrying portions spacedapart on the order of the spacing of the receiver and transmitter parts of the hand-set. One of these carrying parts is adapted to accommodate and support the receiver and the other is adapted to accommodate and support the transmitter. An important feature of the invention resides in the provision in the transmitter-supporting part of a supporting or receiving area having sounddamping, cushioning material therein. In this respect it is a still further important feature of the invention to provide peripheral or annular means on the transmitter-supporting part adapted to encircle or surround the rim of the transmitter for blocking external sound waves.

Specifically, it is an object to embody a preferred form of the invention in a support or rest that is adapted to be carried in an upright position on a wall or other upright object and to adapt this support to suspend or carry the handset by the receiver part thereof, provision being made for nesting of the receiver part in a receiver-carrier and further provision being made for nesting of the transmitter in a transmittercarrier, an intermediate portion of the support being concave or dished to accommodate the fingers of the hand of the user, whereby the handset may be easily placed on or removed from the support. Further objects of the invention reside in the provision of: cushioning material for eliminating the noises incident to contact of the receiver with the receiver-engaging part of the support; guide means for facilitating the seating of the transmitter in the transmitter-receiving recess; sound-damping material in the transmitter-receiving part comprising a removable pad having adhesive backing thereon so that the pad may be readily removed and replaced with other and similar pads for hygienic purposes.

The foregoing and other important objects and desirable features inherent in and encompassed by the invention will become apparent as a preferred embodiment of the invention is completely disclosed in the following detailed description and accompanying sheet of drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the hand-set rest shown in a normal upright position.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the rest showing a hand-set placed thereon.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken generally on the line 3--3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of the transmitter-carrying portion of the rest, illustrating the removability of the cushioning, sound-damping pad.

For the purposes of clarification of the disclosure the hand-set will be described first. This is shown in elevation in Figure 2. However, since the hand-set is of conventional or standard design, familiarity with the size and configuration thereof will be assumed and additional illustration is deemed unnecessary. The handset is designated generally by the letters HS and comprises a receiver R and a transmitter 'T spaced apart lengthwise of and joined by a handle H. As is known, the receiver has an annular rim RR and an outwardly facing circular face RF, the plane of which is at an acute angle to the principal axis of the handle H. The transmitter likewise has an annular rim TR and an outwardly facing circular face T5. The plane of the transmitter face is likewise at an acute angle to the principal axis of the handle H and this plane from or is suspended by the lip 525..

ment.

and that of the receiver face converge toward the handle. The hand-set is provided with the usual cord C.

The rest or support comprises an elongated body designated generally by the numeral it having an inner or back side 12 and a front or top or outer side M. The body has upper and lower carrying parts or portions 16 and I8 respectively. The particular embodiment of the invention illustrated is especially adapted'for molding out. of plastic or other suitable material and for that purpose is preferably of hollow section (Figure 3).

The upper carrying part I6 includes a transverse bar portion 20 having provided therein a pair of countersunk bores 22 through which screws may be passed to secure the support. toa wall or other appropriate upright object. It will be appreciated, of course, that the supportzmay be suitably used in a horizontal position and the mounting means 2.022 may be utilized to mount the support in such position if desired.

The upper carrying part comprises means. for supportingly receiving or engaging the receiver R of the hand-set HS. The sectional structure and configuration of the upper part, are such as to provide a generally semi-circular lip 24 which delineates an. upwardly and outwardly opening recess 26 inwh-ich the receiver is accommodated or received, as best shown in Figure 2. When the .support is used in the upright position as suggested by the drawings, the hand-set depends Since the lip 24 is semi-circular or substantially so, it will have integral portions of the lip spaced apart on a chord of the circular receiver rim RR, which ..c-hord is normal or transverse to the principal axis of the support or a straight line drawn through the centers of the carryingparts l6 and i8. These supporting portions are designated at 24a and 24b in Figure 1. The portion 24a appears as a dotted line in Figure 2. Since these portions are .disposed as aforesaid theywill lie at opposite sides of. the receiver R and will accordingly restrain the, receiver against lateral displacement relative to the support. The lip 24, of course, holds the hand-set against downward displace- Upwarddisplacement of, the hand-set relative to the support is permitted and in fact is desired for the removal of the hand-set from .the transmitter T of the hand-set is received by the-lower carrying part It which is especially provided with an integral flat wall 28 inclined to the principal axis of the body iii. and surrounded .by anannular or peripheral integral wall- 30 having a diameter on the order of but slightly larger than. the diameter of the transmitter face and rimTF and TR. The peripheral wall 30- is upstanding or stands out from the wall 28 at a substantially uniform height except for an integral portion 3-2 at the bottom. thereof which is extended further outwardly or in an axial direction to provide a guide leading to and for guiding the transmitter inwardly to seat on a. flat circular surface 3 2. provided by" a circular pad 36 of material such as foam or sponge rubber or similar material having sound-damping and. cushioning properties As will best be seeninFigures. 1. and

.4 4 the guide portion 32 is slightly arcuate as viewed from the front, preferably following the curvature of the annular Wall 39.

The pad 36 has an inner surface 38 provided with an adhesive backing or coating for removably securing the pad in place so that the pad may be removed and renewed from time to time p by similar pads for hygienic purposes.

The receiver-retaining lip 2 may be provided, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, with an; arcuate strip is of material having properties similar to those of the pad 38, thus serving to damp sounds that would otherwise be caused by contact of the receiver with the support when the hand-set is placed on the support.

As bestshown in Figure 2 the front or top side of the support is concave or dished at 12 so as to be spaced from the proximate surface of the handle H, the space thus provided accommodating the fingers of the hand of the user.

It will. be seen from the foregoing description that the present invention embodies broadly the provision of a support which may be mounted in anyone of a. plurality of positions, particularly either vertical-or horizontal, and which has means for engaging and supporting the'hand-set, including thecarrying part it and its components that provide a recessdesigned by the surface 34 and peripheral Wall 36, this recess having an inner generally circular areacomprising thesurfacefill, the annular wall 38. serving in additionto blocking external sound waves as means providing an opening leading. to the recess to-guide and: accommodate seating of the-transmitter. face IT on the-surface, 34..

In. use, the person answering, thetelephone has merely toremcve ordemount the hand-set from the circuit-controlling key ofthe telephone and, after ascertaining. that a. delay will: be involved in. further conversation, may then easily: place the hand-set on the. support as illustrated: in Figure 2;. placing of the hand-set. on thesupport iseasily accomplished by first placing the re;- ceiver R in the upper recess 36- so that the lip 2G engages under the rim ER or thereceiver at the junction of thisirim. W-itlmthe. handle H. Because. of. the spacing of the recessv 26 and the recess. 30-34 the: transmitter. will substantially automatically seatinthe. carrying part It. Since soundedamping material is provided at 46 and combination of the wall 28. and pad 36: will effectively block anysoundwaves that may approach from behind the support;

Becauseof the concave-or dishedzconfigurat-ion at. 42. of the front, or top. side. of the body, the fingers of. the person" placing: the; hand-set on or removing; the hand-set; from the support. are readilyaccommodated. and no difficulty will be experienced inthis phase of the utility of the support.

Important-objects. and featuresiof the. invention not. specifically enumerated above will undoubtedly occur td those. versed in the:art, as likewise will numerous. modifications. and. alterations. in

the preferred embodiment of the invention, all of which may be readily achieved without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. For use with a conventional telephone instrument of the type having a hand-set demountable from the circuit-controlling key of the instrument and combining a circular transmitter and a circular receiver spaced apart and joined by a handle in such manner that the planes of the circular faces of the transmitter and receiver converge toward the handle: a support for suspending the demounted hand-set by its receiver, comprising an elongated body of relatively rigid material adapted normally to assume an upright position and having a back side to lie fiat against a wall or similar upright and including a front or outer side provided integrally with a' lower carrying part and an upper carrying part joined by an integral intermediate body part and spaced apart on the order of and respectively adapted to face the transmitter and receiver faces; means on the upper carrying part including an upwardly and outwardly opening recess, an integral outwardly projecting concave lip having a relatively narrow marginal edge to hook under the receiver adjacent to its junction with the handle, the underside of the lip receding toward the body so as to lie out of contact with the hand-set handle and thus to provide a free fulcrum on which the receiver-supported hand-set may swing freely inwardly for engagement of the transmitter with the lower carrying part; and said lower carrying part having a fiat, circular, outwardly facing surface of a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the transmitter face and lying in a plane at such angle to the body that the transmitter face of the freely suspended hand-set swings inwardly to seat in face-to-surface contact on said surface, said lower part further including integrally therewith a peripheral wall about said surface and outstanding therefrom generally uniformly to such distance as to receive and loosely encircle the rim of the seated transmitter for blocking external sound waves.

2. The invention defined in claim 1, further References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,339,413 King Jan. 18, 1944 2,484,450 Fisher Oct. 11, 1949 

